Annington Homes is a collection of more than 40,000 properties mainly in the south-east of England. The residents are married members of the UK armed forces and the rent is paid by the country's government. At first glance, therefore, a bond transaction secured against such assets would seem to be an easy sell. In Annington Homes’ case, however, the situation was rather more complicated.
For years, the Married Quarters Estate (MQE) was owned by the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD), but in 1996 Japanese bank Nomura acquired the homes for £1.67bn ($2.69bn). The MQE, comprising 57,434 properties, became known as Annington and was run by Nomura’s principal finance arm.
